Fire gauntlets, jungle camps and chestnut festivals! Travel expert at Europe’s leading camper tour operator provides some unique autumn travel inspiration.
Bringing with it cooler climes, quieter surrounds and better-value-for money trips, Autumn is a wonderful time to embark on a trip, but the season’s offerings needn’t be pigeonholed to pumpkin spiced lattes, falling leaves and warm sweatshirts. Let’s explore autumn travel.
Max Schmidt, Chief Adventurer at CamperDays, Europe’s leading camper tour operator, says: “Autumn is a great time to get away and enjoy a more affordable trip, with holidays being up to 20% cheaper in the shoulder season. And, with summers getting hotter, what was once your mid-July road trip can easily be had in September or even October.
“For those not quite ready to bid farewell to summer, the south of France, the Canary Islands and tropical Madeira still have beautifully warm autumns. But if you’re keen to embrace the new season, many towns and cities across Europe have their own unique celebrations honouring either the country’s folklore or seasonal produce, sometimes both.”
Below, Max recommends five unique autumn travel ideas.
Gorge on chestnuts in the south of France
Tourists visiting Provence in autumn will still enjoy warm temperatures but with less of the summer crowds. Toulon, Marseille, or Nice are good places to begin a road trip in Provence, just as the region begins its autumn celebrations.
Over three Sundays in October, Collobrières, a quaint commune nestled in the forested Massif des Maures mountain range, hosts the Chestnut Festival, Fêtes de la Châtaigne. Free to attend and welcoming of pets, local producers, craftspeople and musicians all gather to celebrate the chestnut harvest.
Provence is famous for its chestnut groves, and many owners will offer guided walks to educate guests about the tradition.
Dance with the devil in Catalunya
La Mercè Festival in Barcelona is a sensory delight that grownups and older children will find enthralling. This late September event is a celebration of the Patron Saint of Barcelona and the arrival of autumn.
A highlight of the festival is the infamous correfoc – literally meaning, fire run. It consists of performers dressed as devils, demons and monsters spraying sparklers and fireworks into the crowd as the more hesitant dodge the sparks while the more bolshy run through them. Even fire-breathing dragons prowl the streets looking for a soul to scare.
Vehicles are of course not permitted in the centre during this, so keep yours securely parked in a covered car park during the festivities. And if it all gets too much, then the coastal town of Sitges just 45 minutes away is a much quieter, scenic spot for a drive.
Pumpkins galore in Germany
The pumpkin is emblematic of autumn due to its connection with the harvest season. This seasonal gourd is usually orange, but pumpkins can be red, white, or even blue.
Germany’s Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival spans the entire autumn (23 August – 3 November 2024). Each year the theme changes, but the festival always displays intricately carved pumpkin sculptures and scrumptious pumpkin-based delicacies such as soup, waffles, sparkling wine, and local delicacy Maultaschen, a Bavarian dumpling.
Le sagre, Italy’s autumn food festivals
An Italian sagra (pl. sagre) is a harvest festival held in the smaller towns of Italy, each one dedicated to a single locally grown foodstuff.
These take place all over the country so are the perfect foodie pit stops for your cross-country road trip which could begin in north or south. The most notable are the truffle festivals in Piedmont and Umbria, or ones dedicated to chestnuts in Tuscany or olives in Puglia.
While dates vary, they normally take place across October and November.
Reconnect with nature in Madeira
While autumn in tropical Madeira isn’t characterised by reddening leaves and toasted marshmallows, one of the island’s newest tourist offerings, the weeklong Nature Festival (1-6 October 2024), offers a different kind of autumn travel experience. Guests take part in or watch sports activities and cultural events within the lush surrounds of Funchal.
The best way to get to Madeira in a campervan is to pick up a vehicle in Porto then take the Porto Santo to Funchal ferry crossing, around two and a half hours each way.
For more information or to book a campervan or motorhome for your autumn travel, visit camperdays.co.uk.
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